Spring-hinged two-part receptacle



Nov. 21, 1950 J. J. LYNCH SPRING-HINGED TWO-PART RECEPTACLE 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 26, 1945 INVENTOR.

Nov. 21, 1950 J. J. LYNCH SPRI-NG-HINGED TWO-PART RECEPTACLE 5Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 26, 1945 INVENTOR.

Nov. 21, 1950 J. J. LYNCH SPRING-HINGED' TWO-PART RECEPTACLE 3Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 26, 1945 INVENTOR.

1 l I I I l I I I I II Patented Nov. 21, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE SPRING-HINGED TWO-PART RECEPTACLE John J Lynch, Metuchen, N. 3.

Application July 26, 1945, Serial No. 607,203

6 Claims. I

This invention relates to holdersand in particular to a type designedtoencase the brush end of a toothbrush so that the same can be kept in asanitary condition and can be removed from and returned to the holderwith a minimum of efiort and time. a

A particular object of my invention is to provide a holder in which allof the parts may be made from plastic or non-metal material and in whicha novel molding of the parts will result in the reduction of the numberof different parts wherein the connecting pin that hinges the partstogether for opening and closing movement may be molded integrally withspring arms that serve as yieldable means for maintaining the parts ofthe holder closed and also prevent the relative movement of each partsidewise or laterally with respect to the other part, said spring meansserving as a locking means to effectively hold the assembled structuretogether. A still further object of the invention is to provide a hingepin having formed integrally therewith the spring arms referred to andin addition form the hinge pin of hollow molded form. While plasticconstruction is preferred, the use of non-rusting metal is with in thescope of the invention, but the use of the hinge element of elastic pastic permits ready assembly of the parts and replacement at small cost.

A further obiect of the invention is the provision of means whereby thebru h holders may be individu lly supported so that th y can be placedin and r moved from a rack w thout the necessity of removing anv ad acnt holder from the rack. Also, each individual holder may be employedalone and is so constructed that it can be laid on a flat surface, canbe hun up on a nail or can be supported from a flat wall by the u e of avacuum cup. Each of the holders is so arran ed in the rack that thewhole gro p form a s -b ta tially unbrok n front surface whi h can beused for combinations of letters making up a word, each individualholder also lending itself to the use on one side thereof of identifyingnames or insignia and each holder being also formed so that one side orthe other, whichever is outermost in the rack may show the simulation ofa figure.

With these and other objects in view, the invention comprises certainconstructions hereinafter described and then particularly pointed out inthe claims and a preferred embodiment of my invention is illustrated inthe accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a view in perspective ofa holder and rack constructed in accordance with my invention,

Figure 2 is a view in perspective of a holder as it would appear out ofthe rack,

Figure 3 is a view in perspective of one of the like halves of a holder,

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing a half section turned atninety degrees and illustrating how it can be combined with the halfsection of Figure 3 to form a whole holder,

- Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on the line 55 ofFigure 2 showing the relative position of a spring coil between the hubportions of the hinge,

Figure 6 is a view in side elevation partly in section, of a holder inindividual use,

Figure '7 is a view in perspective of a holder shown supported against awall by a vacuum cup,

Figure 8 is a plan view of the holder shown in Figure 7, the cup beingshown in section,

Figure 9 is a view in side elevation showing a holder of slightlydifferent conformation,

Figure 10 is a front view of the holder shown in Figure 9,

Figure 11 is a bottom view of the holder shown in Figure 9,

Figure 12 is a fragmentary view in section of the holder supportingportion of a rack showing th bevell d edges of the engaging surfaces ofthe holder and rack,

Figure 13 is a face view of a holder sho ing how th same can be embossedor engraved to simulate a figure,

Figure 14 is a view in end l vation of a form of ra k and holder inwhich the depth of both is about alike,

Figure 15 is a face view of the rack and holders shown in Figure 14 sowin how the latter may present a subst ntially unbrok n app ranceacross the front thereof to bear individual names or numbers or someform of advertisin Figure 16 is a fragmentarv nlan view of the hingehubs and means of holding the same to ge ter a a .p

Figure 1'7 is a section on the line of Figure 16 showing the integralconstruction of the spring and hinging means,

Figure 18 is a side view of the hinge and spring element,

Figures 19, 20, 21, and 22 show various forms of the hinge and springelements.

Referring to the drawing in detail, l indicates a rack strip whose endsare ofiset as at I to be secured to a supporting surface, theintermediate section or" reach of the rack |2being shaped to presentoiiset strips or fingers |3 in spaced relation with each other, theintermediate panels l4 constituting the body of the rack. The bottoms ofthe fingers |3 where they join the body of the rack afford a rest forthe holders, which are held securely in place in the fingers and againstthe panels I 4. The rack may be made of any material desired, plasticbeing preferable as it lends itself to easy cutting and shaping ormolding.

The brush holder is made of identical parts that require one molding dieand are shaped to provide a housing I5 of rectangular hollow form havingside edge openings l6 and an opening for the shank of a brush in thebottom inclined wall H, the opening indicated as at l8 being of anydesired shape. The taper of the bottom wall H, which may be flat orsemi-circular in shape, drains off water that may be left in the brushwhen it is returned to the holder after use.

The housing I5 is formed with an integral edge flange at opposite edgesthereof as at 20, which flanges slip in behind the fingers |3 to supportthe holder It in lace in the rack. The distance between the fingers 13,which are in efiect outstanding flanges, permits close fit therebetweenof the housings |5 so that when one holder is put in place or removed itwill not effect the position of the adiacent holder. Each holder may beremoved individually. The fingers l3 have a spring action and grip theflanges 20 if desired, but this is unnecessary as the depth of theflanges 20 prevent any accidental lifting of the holder out of the rack.

The housing i5, two of which are combined to make a complete holder, isshaped to provide along its upper inner edge, a. cylindrical hub portion2| and an adjacent or contiguous hub' seat portion 22, which latterissubstantially of the same contour and radius as the exterior of thehub so that when the housings |5 are put together to form a holder, therespective hubs and hub seats fit together to provide a hinge structurethat is long enough to prevent any relative skewing between the housingsand to hold them closed evenly at the edges. The hub 2| and seat 22 areformed in the junction of the extension 23 with the housing body IE, itbeing understood that the entire housing unit is molded in one piece toprovide the extension 23 ,to which may be attached by a rivet, a vacuumcup as at 24 or the extension may be provided with an opening 25 throughwhich itm'ay be hung on a nail. The outer surface of the extension 23may .be knurled so that the fingers will not slip when the fingerextensions 23' are squeezed to open the housings IS in their unitedholder construction. The inner wall 275 of said extension is slotted asat 21, the slot opening into; the hub seat 22 at one side and boundingthe end of the hub 2 at the opposite side. The slot is placed centrallyof the housing l5 so that when two housings are united, the slot of eachhousing provides acontinuous groove for the reception of a spring member30 which as shown in Figure 5 may be a coiled spring whose convolutions3| surround a hinge pin 32 passing through the hub portions 2| andspaced by the convolutions of the spring, whose ends 33 rest in theslots 21 and prevent lateral separation of the housings |5 by engagementwith the side walls of said slots 21. In this form the coil of thespring member may frictionally engage the hinge pin which may be forcefitted into the coiled part of the spring so that it will not haveendwise movement, and so that heading of the pin will not be necessary.

In the preferred method, I would join the housings by the use of asingle piece flexible plastic member of the forms shown in Figures 16through 22 and consisting, in Figures 16, 17 and f8 of a pin member 34whose elastic property is negligible having wings or blades 35 which areelastic enough to yieldably resist the movement of the finger pieces 23toward each other in an opening movement of the holder to permit removalof a brush and provide the spring tension. necessary to maintain thehousings in relatively closed position. The spring blades 35 lie theslots 2! and fit therein snugly enough to prevent relative sidewisemovement of the housings. They prevent the pin portion from movingendwise and the holder is made from two different members, that istwolike housing pieces i5 joined by one spring hinge member 34. The partscan be quickly assembled and are securely united when the member 34 isin place with its blades in the groove that is formed by the slots 2?,the blades being part of a peripheral spacing flange 34A formed on themember 34, the blades being part of a peripheral spacing flange 34Aformed on the member 34.

While I have shown this form of structure in connection with a toothbrush holder, it is evident that it can be employed in any structure inwhich like hinged parts are to be united for relative opening andclosing movement as in a box construction for use in any manner.

While reference is made to flexible plastic, it is evident that the formof hinge member may be embodied in a metal structure and in Figure 20, aform of either plastic or metal structure is shown consisting of a pinforming tube 49 which fits into the hubs 2| of the united housings I5 sothat the integrally formed wings or blades 4| thereof will rest in theslots 27 to lock the housings together as shown in Figure 2 and providethe spring action to yieldably keep the parts closed. The form of theblade portions 35 in Figure 17 may be varied as shown in Figure 19 inwhich they extend as at 42 tangentially to the pin forming portion 43 ofthe hinge element. In Figure 21, the use of a spring strip 44 isillustrated as providing blade portions 45 and a central loop 46 whichmay grip the separate pin 46A used as a hinging element to cooperatewith the member 4'4 in holding the housings l5 in united relation.

The bore 28 of thehu bs 2| is molded or drilled in the hubs and thehinge pin member is slipped into one of the hubs of a housing and thenthe other likehousing is slipped over the exposed end of the hinge pinmember and the blades snap into the slots 2! and the device iscompletely assembled, the parts are locked together and the housings maybe squeezed open against the spring action of the blades and-will snapclosed when the finger extensions are released, to imprison the bristleend of the brush within the holder.

As shown in Figure 22, the hinge pin 48 may be grooved as at 49intermediate its ends to permit the retention of a spring blade 50,either or both of which may be made from metal or plastic.

In the Figures 14 and 15, the holder is shown as being about as deep asthe rack and the edge flanges 52 engage within the turned over strips 53so that the holders are supported in the rack and present along theirfront faces a substantially unbroken wall. Each holder may be identifiedas by the name of the individual whose toothbrush is housed or by anumber as desired and the whole may form a complete advertisement.Further, the upper ends of the finger extensions 23 when the holders arein place in the rack provide a cradle into which may be laid the tube oftoothpaste so that it is convenient for use. For the use of children,the holders may be ornamented or molded in simulation of human oranimate fingers as shown in Figure 13 as at 55, in this instance theholder being of slightly difierent shape in that the finger extensionsare shortened as at 55' and the wall of the housing is curved as at 51.When the holder is used individually, it may be supported on a pin ornail passing through an opening 25 formed in the end of the fingerextension 23 or may be provided with a vacuum cup at the end of one ofsaid extensions as at 24, Figures 7' and 8. The upper ends of the rackpanels and fingers, l4 and 13 respectively, and the lower edges of theflanges 20 may be bevelled or edged as at60 to facilitate the insertionof the holders into the rack, as shown in Figure 12.

My invention is not to be restricted to the precise details ofconstruction shown since various changes and modifications may be madetherein without departing from the scope of the invention or sacrificingthe advantages derived from its use.

What I claim is:

1. A receptacle comprising like housing members, each member beingshaped to provide a hub and a hub contacting seat in axial alignment, aslot in each member intermediate hub' and seat, and extending laterallytherefrom, a pintle passing through the hubs when the members arereversely united and flexible means extending laterally from said pintleto engage the slot in each member and secure said members in receptacleforming relation and yieldably resist relative opening movement thereof.

2. A receptacle comprising housing members made from the same plasticmolding die, each member being shaped to provide a hub and a hub seat inaxial alignment each hub and seat being in contact when the members areunited, a slot intermediate said hub and seat and extending the body ofeach member, a pintle passing through the aligned hubs and slot engagingspring arms extending from said pintle to secure said members inreceptacle forming relation and to yieldably resist relative openingmovement of the members.

3. A receptacle comprising like housing members, each member beingshaped to provide an extending finger piece, a hub and a hub seat inadjacent axial alignment, a slot intermediate said hub and seatextending into the finger piece, and a pivot member having integraloppositely projecting flexible blades for engaging the slot portions ofthe members to secure the same laterally in matching receptacle formingassociation and yieldably oppose the hinging movements of the membersrelatively to each other in one direction.

4. A holder comprising plastic units cast in the same die, each unitbeing shaped to provide a receptacle portion, axially aligned single huband hub contacting seat portions each extending substantially half thewidth of the unit, said receptacle portion having a groove extendinglaterally from said hub seat at the inner end of said hub, a hinge pinpassing through the hubs of two assembled units and laterally extendingmembers associated with said hinge pin for engagement with the groovesof said units for holding the latter widthwise in receptacle formingrelation and yieldably resisting relative hinging movement therebetween.

5. A holder comprising relatively hinged members each including, whenthe members are reversely united, a cooperating hub and seat portion andformed to provide grooves extending laterally from a point between saidhub and seat portions, a hinge pin passing through said hub portions andhaving integral flexible extensions for engagement with said grooves toyieldably resist hinging movement of the members in one direction, andsaid extensions and grooves constituting means for securing the pin inposition in the hubs and preventing relative lateral movement betweensaid members.

6. A container made from two identical half members each shaped toprovide hub and hub seat portions for interfitting axially alignedcontactual relation when the members are reversely united to form thecontainer, a slot in each half member extending laterally from thecontiguous ends of the hub and seat portions, a pintle passing throughsaid hub portions and means associated with the pintle for engaging eachslot to secure the halves in container forming relation and to yieldablyresist pivotal movement therebetween.

JOHN J. LYNCH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 495,966 Ennis Apr. 25, 1893753,381 Vom Eigen Mar. 1, 1904 1,102,556 Swartz July 7, 1914 1,291,349Ackers Jan. 14, 1919 1,301,698 Hough Apr. 22, 1919 1,444,368 Conley Feb.6, 1923 1,453,959 Thomas May 1, 1923 1,544,694 Speidel July 7, 19251,870,276 Beilock Aug. 9, 1932 1,952,937 Pilato Mar. 27, 1934 1,995,348Larter Mar. 26, 1935 2,015,999 Frank Oct. 1, 1935 2,037,569 Fahn Apr.14, 1936 2,074,248 Barbour Mar. 16, 1937 2,145,456 Oshman et a1. Jan.31, 1939 2,205,969 Boenecke June 25, 1940 2,246,705 Tyree June 24, 19412,275,549 Oshman et al Mar. 10, 1942 2,308,625 Rathbun Jan. 19, 19432,324,738 Stieglitz July 20, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date449,335 Great Britain June 25, 1936

